pickaxe
/ˈpɪkˌæks/noun, verb
pickaxe is spelled P-I-C-K-A-X-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 62,894th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, pickaxe means “A heavy iron tool with a wooden handle; one end of the head is pointed, the other has a chisel edge” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pickaxe is pickaxes.
How many letters and syllables are in pickaxe?
| Letters | 7: P-I-C-K-A-X-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 62,894th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is pickaxe?
Pickaxe appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 62,894th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce pickaxe?
- US /ˈpɪkˌæks/
Pickaxe has 2 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-pickaxe.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-pickaxe.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with pickaxe
Also written: pick-axe (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of pickaxe
- pickaxes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- pickax US
- pick-axe
- pickaxing participle, present
- pickaxed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pickaxe mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A heavy iron tool with a wooden handle; one end of the head is pointed, the other has a chisel edge.
He was mining stone using a pickaxe.
verb
- 1
To use a pickaxe.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pickaxe in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pioche , piocher |
| German | Spitzhacke, Pickel |
| Portuguese | picareta |
| Spanish | pico, zapapico, sacho, piqueta , picar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does pickaxe come from?
Inherited from Middle English pykeaxe, pecaxe, pyke exe (“pickaxe”), an alteration (due to folk etymology association with pick and axe) of Middle English pikeyse, pikeys, pykois, from Anglo-Norman *pikeis, Old French picois, pecois, from Latin picōsa (“pickaxe”), from picca, ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *pīk (“sharp point, pike”). Doublet of pique and pike.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).